Speaking up

I can assure The Dominion Post (Scandal leaves questions, Editorial, March 11) that public servants can and do notify concerns about suspected wrongdoing without fear of comeback.

The Protected Disclosures Act 2000 provides statutory protections to anyone who reports suspected serious wrongdoing. These protections are available to any current and past employees who follow the act’s processes.

Your editorial says that encouraging a culture where staff can ‘‘raise concerns without fear of reprisal’’ is a critical part of the vigilance we need to maintain against fraudulent behaviour. I totally agree. Furthermore, such a culture is established and reinforced within the public service.

In December I wrote to public service chief executives and asked that they review their agencies’ internal processes for raising and escalating issues of concern, as well as their Protected Disclosures Act policies and processes.

I reminded them that the standards of behaviour that we expect of public servants are critical to ensuring trust and confidence in the public service, and that we should be rigorous in applying them. PETER HUGHES State Services Commissioner